Door-operating mechanism for dump-wagons.



W. ATKINS. DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM FOR DUMP WAGONS. APPLICATION liLED MAYG, 1912.

1,050,713. Patented Jan. 14,1913' .24 L W I 1 awue/whoz WILLIAM ATKINS, or AUBURN, New YORK.

DOOR-OPERATING MECHANISM FOR DUMP-WAGONS."

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 14,1913.

Original application filed. March 22, 1911, Serial No. 616,137. Divided and this application filed May 6,

1912. Serial No. 695,489.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM ATKINS, of Auburn, in the county of Cayuga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Door-Operating Mechanism for Dump-Wagons, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description. 7

This invention relates to certain improvements in door-operating mechanism for dump wagons of the class set forth in my Patent No. 871,771, issued on the 26th day of November, 1907, and constitutes a divi-- sion of my co-pending application No. 616,137, filed on the 22nd day of March, 1911, and resulting in Patent #1,025,859 issued on the 7th day of May, 1912, in which a rotary drum mounted upon the front end of the dump box is connected by suitable chains or cables to the bottom doors of the box in a manner similar to that shown in my pending application No. 582,678, filed September 19, 1910, although it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to any particular manner of connecting the chains to the doors.

The primary object is to provide a simple and comparatively inexpensive door-operating and release mechanism for dump wagons involving the use of a lever, ratchet and pawl for rotating the drum to wind the cable thereon for the purpose of closing the doors, together with a holding pawl or detent cooperating with the ratchet wheel to hold the drum and doors connected thereto in their adjusted positions, and a releasing lever connected to the holding pawl for tripping the same when desired to release the drum and allow the doors to open under their own gravity or load supported thereby.

Another object is to provide means for automatically tripping the winding pawl and thereby releasing the lever upon which it is mounted in case the drum should be released without first throwing the winding lever to its inoperative position.

A further object is to provide means for holding the releasing lever ineither of three of its adjusted positions, so that when it is in its intermediate position it will allow the holding pawl to vibrate as the teeth of the ratchet wheel are operated thereagainst without transmitting such vibratory movement to said lever, or by shifting the lever rearwardly to lock the holding pawl in its holding position against vibration, or to trip the holding pawlby throwing the lever to its extreme forward position.

A still further object is to provide a spring for holding the release lever in either of its adjusted positions.

Other objects and uses will be brought out in the following descriptions.

In the drawingsFig-ure 1 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view through a portion of the front end of a dump box showing my improved door-controlling means, the drum supporting shaft and a portion of the holding pawl being shown in section.

Fig. 2 is a top plan of the door-operating means shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the same mechanism taken on line 33 Fig. 1.

In carrying out the objects stated, a drum 17 is rigidly secured by a bolt or key 16 to one end of a rotary tubular shaft 18 which latter is journaled in a suitable bearing in the forwardly projecting extensions aof a dump box A-, said drum being preferably located at the outside of the box (usually on the right hand side) with one end abutting against the adjacent side a and itsvouter end locked to the tubular shaft 18 by a pin -l6-. This pin or bolt 16 extends diametrically through the drum and shaft and is provided with a suitable eye'for receiving one end of a chain or cable l6 which may be con nected to the doors in any suitable manner, not necessary to herein illustrate or describe. A metal plate a is bolted to the inner side of the extensions aand is also provided with a bearing in which the adjacent portion of the shaft 18 is journaled.

A ratchet wheel 21 having an inwardly projecting hub 2l' is rigidly secured by a pin or key -2l to the shaft 18 just at the inner side of the metal plate a. Loosely journaled upon the hub ofthe ratchet wheel 21 is a handlever 19 carrying a pivoted pawl 20-- normally gravitating into engagement with ,the teeth of the ratchet wheel 21 for the purpose of rotating the shaft 18- and drum 17- in the direction indicated by arrow w, Fig. 1, and thereby winding the cable 16- on said drum to close the doors. Rigidly secured to the outer face of the pawl 20 is a lug -22 adapted to ride against a cooperating lug -23 on the inner face of the plate -a to trip the pawl -20 out of engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel when the lever 19 is drawn back to the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. The lever 19- and pawl 20 cooperating with the ratchet wheel 2l and cable -16 constitute what may be termed means for closing the doors.

A holding pawl or detent 24: is pivoted at 25- to the lower rear corner of the plate -aand its lower end is weighted for yieldingly holding said pawl in 0perative engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel.

An upright release lever -26 is pivoted at its lower end at Q7 to the adjacent portion of a triangular frame 28- which in turn is bolted to the inner side of the adjaeent extensions a of the dump box, the intermediate portion of said lever being connected with a lost motion by a link 29 to a pin 30 on the lower weighted end of the pawl 2 1-, said weighted end being bifurcated for receiving the adjaoent end of the link 29-. The triangular frame -28 is preferably arranged in a plane below that of the ratchet wheel 21 with its apex at the bottom and constituting a bearing for the lever -26- so that the upper side of the frame is disposed in a more or less horizontal position and is provided with a bar 31- having its inter mediate portion spaced apart from the outer portion of the frame and provided with a series of notches 32 and -33 forming shoulders for receiving and retaining the lever 26 in either of its adjusted positions for purposes hereinafter described, said lever 26 being held in the notches by a flat spring 3l, having its front end secured to the front end of the upper portion of the frame 28 as shown more clearly in Figs. 2 and 8. The aperture in the rear end of the link 29 for receiving the pin 30 is elongated in the direction of the link to form a slot 35, normally extending forwardly from the pin when the lever -26- is in its intermediate position and the pawl 24 in operative engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel, thus permitting said pawl to be oscillated by the teeth of the ratchet wheel 21 when the latter is rotated, without transmitting said oscillatory movement to the link -29 or lever 26. This lever -26 may be operated by the foot or by the hand of the attendant sitting upon the seat of the wagon, and is held in its intermediate position in the notch 32 by the spring -34.

Assuming now that the parts are shown in their position assumed when the doors are closed, and it is desired to dump the load, the lever -19 is then drawn rearwardly to the dotted position shown in Fig. l, where it will rest by its own gravity, thereby forcing the pawl 20 out of engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel -2l through the engagement of the lug -22 with the lug 23, whereupon the lever -2G may be drawn inwardly out of the notch 32 against the action of the spring 3l and then forced forwardly to the forward dotted position shown in Fig. 1 therebywithdrawing the pawl 24 from its holding position and allowing the drum to rotate under the weight of the doors and load thereon. Assuming again that the parts are in the position shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and it is desired to look the holding pawl 24; firmly in its holding position, as for example in long hauls, to prevent any liability of accidentally dumping the load, the lever -26 may be rocked to the rear dotted position shown in Fig. 1, thereby forcing the front end of the slot 35 against the pin 30 in which position the lever -26- will be locked in the notch -32 by the spring 3t and when the vehicle has reached its destination or po sition for dumping, the operation previously described may be repeated for dumping the load.

In case the operator should inadvertently omit to return the lever 19 to its rearward position, shown by dotted lines, when the pawl 24 is thrown from its holding position, it is evident that said lever 19- would be carried forwardly and rearwardly and the pawl --20 automatically tripped by the cooperative engagement of the lugs 22 and 23-, thus freeing the drum and allowing the continued unwinding of the frame and opening of the doors under the load.

What I claim is 1. A door-controlling mechanism for dump wagons comprising a drum, a ratchet wheel secured to the drum, a winding lever loosely journaled coaxial with the drum, in proximity to the ratchet wheel, a pawl on the winding lever gravitating into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel, a lug on the pawl, a stationary lug in the path of the lug on the pawl as the latter is moved rearwardly for tripping said pawl, a holding pawl having a weighted end for yieldingly forcing it into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel, a pin on the weighted end of the pawl, a link having its rear end provided with an elongated slot receiving said pin, a release lever connected to the front end of the link to operate the same and thereby trip the pawl, said slot normally extending forwardly from the pin to allow the pawl to oscillate independently of the link as the ratchet wheel is rotated by v the first named lever to wind a cable theredrum and provided with an axially extend ing hub, a winding lever loosely journaled on said hub, a pawl on said lever normally gravitating into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel, a lug on the pawl, an additional lug on the extension cooperating with the lug on the pawl to trip said pawl as the winding lever is moved rearwardly from an upright position, a frame secured to the extension in a plane below that of the ratchet wheel and provided with a forwardly and rearwardly extending slot in its upper side, the portion of the frame at one side of the slot being provided with notches,

a release lever pivoted to the frame some distance below the slotted portion thereof and extending upwardly through said slot and movable into and out of engagement with said notches and along the slot, a spring for holding the lever in said notches, a holding pawl pivoted to the extension and gravitating into engagement with the teeth of theratchet wheel, and a link pivoted to the intermediate portion of the lever between its pivot and the slotted portion of the frame and having its rear end connected with a lost motion to the holding pawl to permit said pawl to oscillate independently of the link and release lever.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 4th day of May 1912.

WILLIAM ATKINS.

Witnesses:

H. E. CHASE, E. A. THOMPSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. O. 

